Awesome / Captain Planet and the Planeteers

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General

• For lots of people, whether they admit it or not, Captain Planet was their first introduction to environmentalism, and boy, did it ever stick.

Season 1

• "A Hero For Earth":
  • When the Planeteers first come across their rings, Kwame, Gi and Linka just happen to find them while doing mundane tasks (Kwame is planting saplings; Gi is playing with a dolphin, and Linka is recreating birdsong with her keyboard). However, Wheeler and Ma-Ti get significantly cooler moments – Wheeler stops a mugging in progress and Ma-Ti saves Suchi from a jaguar. What makes both of these moments even more impressive is that neither of them actually does anything to their opponent – each of them wins against someone who is either in or above their own weight class by sheer intimidation.
  • The first time Captain Planet's ever summoned. Greedly and Rigger are quite shocked at the sight. Who wouldn't be? It's followed by Cap taking down Rigger quite easily; then, after recovering from a toxic waste attack just in time, he takes the whole mobile oil rig down.
• "Beast of the Temple":
  • With Linka's foot caught in some roots and the dragon encroaching on them, Wheeler ignores Linka's pleas to run for his life and blasts the creature in the face with his ring. Admittedly, this didn't work (after all, dragons have to be fireproof), but standing face to face with a flame-breathing beast ten times your size and attacking it is pretty awesome. When he realizes it isn't working, he instead lures the dragon away after himself, so that Linka can escape. Wheeler is demonstrably scared of the beast, and for extremely good reason, but he doesn't even hesitate to put himself at risk to save the girl he loves.
  • Gi breaks Wheeler out of Greedly's riverside lair, and when the villain catches them, she uses her water powers to cause the river to breach the walls, flooding the entire compound. Greedly should have thought twice about messing with the water Planeteer while there was a river right outside.
• "The Conqueror":
  • Gaia, turned into a mortal, tells Ma-Ti she must go to the missile base, where the other Planeteers are making a mess and could ultimately start World War III. Cue this exchange:
    Ma-Ti: You cannot go there now! Your life would be in danger!
    Gaia: I know. But peace requires a brave heart.
  • Also, the scene where the Planeteers turn away from Zarm combines this with Heartwarming:
    Zarm: What is this sentimental slop? Where are my young conquerors?
    Kwame: I am not a conqueror. I am a Planeteer. (throws his gauntlet to the ground)
    Zarm: Kwame! Someone else will rule if you do not. This world needs an iron fist.
    Linka: That is the last thing it needs. I have felt really miserable since I had this thing on! (throws her gauntlet at Zarm's feet)
    Gi: A peace-maker must have great courage. (throws her gauntlet at Zarm)
    Zarm: Wheeler! Listen to me! Follow me; you can rule the world!
    Wheeler: I don't want your kind of world! (throws his gauntlet far away)
  • One other thing makes the ending even more awesome. After making his We Can Rule Together pitch, Zarm's eyes glow red, which is a sign he's using his powers to mess with someone's mind. Wheeler, the Strawman Ball-holder and hothead of the group, No Sells Zarm's attempt to brainwash him into villainy.
• "Don't Drink the Water" gives the audience a momentary but impressive look at how strong Wheeler is. As Plunder enters, he's being held down on his knees by Rigger and Bleak – the latter being much brawnier – but when Plunder gloats that he "eliminated" Captain Planet and three of the Planeteers, Wheeler effortlessly regains his feet to lunge at him, getting within a couple feet before Bleak and Rigger manage to get him under control again. Even without the ring, he's a force to be reckoned with.
• "Tree of Life": Dr. Blight sprays herself with a magic sap that grants her superpowers even greater than Captain Planet's. When she's curb-stomping Captain Planet a second time, Kwame and Wheeler suddenly tackle her. Of course, it has no effect and she easily throws them away. A bit later, Blight tries to refuel on more sap before finishing off the Captain, but can't find it. Wheeler reveals he picked her pocket and sprays Captain Planet with the sap. He gets supercharged and defeats Blight.
• "The Ultimate Pollution" gives us Kwame charging into the path of an out-of-control tank to rescue two little boys from being run over. He only narrowly avoids getting hit himself and shields the kids from the explosion with his body. They all come out unscathed. Bad. Ass.
• "Mission to Save Earth, Part 2":
  • The epic way Captain Planet defeats Captain Pollution.
    Captain Planet: (bear-hugs Captain Pollution) The pure elements of the Earth. I'm gonna give you a taste of every single one.
    Captain Pollution: NO!
    Captain Planet: First: EARTH! (drives them both through the Earth's crust) Then: FIRE! (they reach the Earth's mantle) And for our next element: WIND! (flies back into the sky, swings Pollution around by his ankle) And finally: WATER! (throws him into the sea to retrieve him moments later) Did you enjoy your bath, Captain Pollution?
    Captain Pollution: Oh... Have a heart, Captain Planet!
    Captain Planet: Oh, don't worry, Pollution! Now that you're all clean, I'm just gonna put you out to dry! (slams him down)
  • Near the end, Commander Clash manages to talk down Plunder's soldiers who had no reason to listen to him, as they weren't his subordinates.
    Commander Clash: Wait, soldiers, listen to me! (soldiers stop) Look around you! Take a good long look! This is the future of the world! If you help monsters like Plunder...
    Looten Plunder: Monsters? (soldiers stare at Plunder) Who are you calling monster?
    Commander Clash: You! You and your kind!
    Looten Plunder: Don't listen to him! Money's all that matters. Money and power! (soldiers cheer for Plunder)
    Commander Clash: What good is money in a world destroyed by waste and pollution? Listen to me, until today, I was a lot like you, a soldier paid to do a job without asking questions. What I have learned, there are things more dangerous than missiles: there is greed, selfishness, indifference, prejudice. Everything, in fact, that monstrosity stands for. If you join him, THIS is our future. How long can you survive in a world like this? The time to choose is NOW! (soldiers drop their weapons)
    Looten Plunder: What are you doing? You fools, we could conquer the world!

Season 2

• "The Predator": While he, Linka, Kwame and the local mayor are trying to catch up to Bleak, who's dragging the Bound and Gagged Gi and Ma-Ti behind his hydrofoil, Wheeler manages to burn off Gi's gag, so she can use her ring, with just a bit of discomfort and minimal damage. Wheeler isn't known for subtlety, and as he points out to Linka, it would be hard for anyone to do that while some distance away on a ship, aiming for a likewise moving target. The guy has some pretty impressive control over his firepower.
• "Summit to Save Earth":
  • Yes, Zarm is a supervillain, but his Voluntary Shapeshifting is quite impressive. He can perfectly replicate not only a person's physical appearance, but also their voice, and even some mannerisms – at least when he considers the last one important enough. He didn't much care about behaving like the Summit President, but later copied Gaia's caring demeanor so well that he easily coaxed the rings out of the Planeteers.
  • Right after Zarm steals the Planeteers' rings and has them captured for the second time, Gaia shows up, looking absolutely furious, and goes all Mama Bear on him for threatening both her quasi-adopted children and Earth.
    Gaia: You wanted to see me, Zarm? Well, here I am. You can leave right now, or I can help you leave. But mark my words: I will not let you destroy this planet.
  • Even more awesome is that she would have easily won their fight, had he not cheated by attacking the Planeteers to distract her.
  • Ma-Ti's little speech to Zarm about the power of Heart, finished with:
    Ma-Ti (pointing at Zarm): My ring will not touch you because... you have no heart!
  • Also, Commander Clash swooping in with a mirror seconds later Just in Time to save Ma-Ti's life. And when one remembers that he earlier has walked away from the kids, saying he failed them...
• "A Twist of Fate": After Captain Planet puts out the fire raging in the poor neighbourhood, some local thugs gang up on Wheeler, calling him "firebug" (since they earlier have seen him set a car on fire, albeit accidentally) and planning to beat him up. Captain Planet immediately goes into Papa Wolf mode and scares them off by setting himself on fire.
  Captain Planet: Ohh, you wanna see a firebug, huh? Hey, he can't hold a candle to me! (engulfs himself in flames)
  The thugs run away in terror.
  Captain Planet (returning to normal): Boy, you try to give people what they want.

Season 3

• "Greenhouse Planet":
  • When Kwame and Ma-Ti wind up in outer space, their powers bounce off the Earth's orbit, recreating a much weaker Captain Planet. After he crash-lands in the sea near Hope Island, and Gaia brings him up to speed on the remaining Planeteers' current situation, he tries to fly to their rescue, but finds out he can't do it without the Wind power. Gaia then reminds him he still has the most important power – his courage. This inspires him to find another way to go help Wheeler and the girls.
    Captain Planet: Who says I can't fly? (runs to the Geo-Cruiser)
  • Later on, as he's still deprived of the Wind power, he manages to avoid Dr. Blight's makeshift-flamethrower attacks with a combination of running and swinging on a pipe like a gymnast.
• "OK at the Gunfight Corral": When four of the Planeteers and their new friend Keeyani end up being held at gunpoint by Greedly's henchman, Gaia scares the crook off by simply showing up as a hologram, giving him a Death Glare and saying an equivalent of the "No, You" phrase.
  Henchman: You ain't going nowhere, boy.
  Gaia: But you are.
  Henchman screams and flees.

Season 4

• "'Teers in the Hood": Katara's not the only Waterbender you do not want to get angry. When Gi learns the identity of the gang member who shot and hospitalized her friend, she completely snaps and uses her ring to send him flying up a waterslide and down into a pool where she tries to drown him. Beware the Nice Ones, indeed!
  Wheeler: Gi, you don't really want to do this!
  Gi: Yes, I do!
  • Gi going all gangster when she takes the gun off Wheeler and intends to use it on the guy who shot King.
  • Props to Wheeler, too, for demonstrating what's hinted in his introduction scene: he can fight and if need be, he will, but he'd much rather not fight if he can avoid it. He may be the muscle of the Planeteers, but, as Ma-Ti declared all the way back in the first season, that muscle's got a whole lot of heart.
  • The end of the episode qualifies, too. The images of civil rights leaders are one of the most powerful and serious moments in a kids' cartoon even to this day.

Season 5

• "No Place Like Home": Gaia and Marge manage to fight off three aggressive men by themselves. Marge knocks out two, and Gaia shoves the last one onto them. Especially notable because while Marge is rather bulky and tough (out of sheer necessity to survive on the streets), Gaia's physical form is that of a slim, delicate young woman – yet she proves strong enough to successfully push away a full-grown man.
• "In Zarm's Way": All the battles between the upgraded (and increasingly more ferocious) Boots and Buster.

Season 6

• "A Good Bomb Is Hard to Find": Ma-Ti punches out Hitler. This one deserves an extra mention because the normal rules for the show forbade the Planeteers from punching the bad guys, but for Hitler, a well-deserved exception was made.
• At the end of "Delta Gone", Looten Plunder is sprayed by an elephant and arrested, which is especially cathartic to see after he succeeded and got away with clear-cutting a forest where endangered species lived in "Whoo Gives a Hoot?"